RG-6 Quad
Shielded Cable

Tools Needed:

RG6 Quad Core Cable

Wire Strippers or Knife

Compression Tool

RG-6 WaterProof Connectors

Wire Cutters

Tape

Using Type
F RG6 Waterproof Compression Connectors

So
you finally went out and got that 1080p HDTV you always wanted.
Realizing that
you should be using RG-6 cable you ran out to Lowes and picked up a
spool of quad-shielded coaxial cable and even spent the extra money for
the Type F compression connectors. All of this to come home and realize
that the consumer grade tool is almost impossible to use. Well before
you give up and go back to 480 let me show you, step by step, how to
terminate a RG6 with a few easy tips.

Using
a knife or set of wire strippers remove 1" of the outer jacket. If you
use wire strippers be careful as most are meant to be used with the
smaller RG-5 cable.

With
the outer jacket removed you will see the first of two tin or aluminum
braids. Using a piece of tape, tape off the exposed wire 3/8 of an inch
from the jacket. This will give you a line to follow while cutting off
the shielding. In addition the tape will catch all of the loose wires
before dropping on the floor to later become embedded in your hand
while you bend over to plug in your wire. (Ask me how I know this.)

With a razor carefully cut the
cable down to the center conductor and remove the dielectric as shown
below. Do not worry about the length of the center conductor as it is
easier to trim once the cable is complete.

Push
the exposed shielding back over the outer jacket of the wire as shown
below. Depending on the composition of your cable be careful as the
shielding wires may be sharp. Also note the two connectors shown below.
One is shown as it comes in the package and one has the ferrule
removed. Removing the outer swaging ferrule makes building these cables
a lot easier. They fit snugly to the ferrule so it will take some
effort to pull them apart, but it is worth it. Be sure you insert the
swaging ferrule on the cable prior to pressing on the connector,
otherwise you will be saying a few choice words when it comes to the
final steps!

Now
push the connector onto the cable until the dielectric comes all the
way
flush with the front of the connector as shown below. This usually
takes a decent amount of force but with the ferrule out of the way you
can twist the connector and work it onto the cable. If you have wire
assembly lube it does help. Be careful that you do not puncture your
finger when inserting the cable into the connector!

Once
you are sure the cable is fully inserted into the connector, push the
ferrule back into place and insert the cable and connector into the
compression tool as shown below. As you press down on the tool the
ferrule will compress onto the connector giving you a secure watertight
seal.

Remove the cable from the tool
and inspect to make sure the center dielectric did not slip. If
everything looks ok, snip back the center conductor with a pair of
snips.

If you
have access to a cable tester, test the cable to make sure both ends
are correctly terminated. If you are the typical home owner and do not
have access to a Fluke tester, you can simply plug the cable in and see
if you have a signal. Congratulations. If all has gone well you have
now built a RG6 cable
that has double the signal strength of an RG5 over 100ft for just a few
dollars.